The Spread of Solar: Bringing Renewable Energy, Money to Sheridan Township

November 18, 2024 Bonnie Lord Arts/Culture, Comics, Community, Features 2

A watercolor illustration of a horizon, railroad tracks leading to where the sun rises. On the left is a non-renewable energy plant, spewing smoke from tall stacks, and on the right is a train, carrying coal.

Read the “prologue” of this series to learn more about the value of comics in journalism.

In the first section of comics, a water color illustration in panel one shows a man speaking from a video call on a computer. The second panel shows an illustration of two silhouettes speaking. In the third panel, an illustration of a man speaks from a computer on a video call. In the last panel, an illustration of a solar panel absorbs rays of sun and outputs a lightning bolt symbolizing energy.

In the second section of comics, the first panel shows a watercolor illustration of a circular blue logo on the left, and the lower peninsula of the state of Michigan on the right, with I-94, Sheridan Township, and the city of Albion highlighted.

In the third section of comics, a watercolor illustration shows a man sitting at a desk, with his business card set on top of the panel in the corner.

A map of Sheridan Township shows the solar field projects in the area, color coded by which company operates them, from February 2024.

The fifth section of comics shows a water color illustration of a man speaking from a chair in the first panel, an illustration of a close-up field, where soybeans and corn grow on the left, while a solar panel is stationed on the right in the second panel. The third panel shows an illustration of a man speaking from a chair, facing a multi-page document.

In the sixth panel of comics, the first panel shows a watercolor illustration of a building, specificially the Sheridan Township Office. The second panel shows a box of text with a stack of money overlaid in the corner. Finally, the third panel shows an illustration of a field by a road, with a solar field on the left and a wind farm on the right.

In the seventh section of comics, the first panel shows an illustration of Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer signing something on a table. The second panel shows an illustration of two buildings with arrow following one to the other, the first being a small local government building, and the second being the Michigan state capitol. The third caption shows an illustraion of a man speaking, and the final panel shows a silhoutte using a computer in front of rows of large cabinets filled with computing hardware.

In the eighth section of comics, the first panel shows an illustration of a man speaking while sitting in an office, with his business card in the corner. In the second panel, a map of the solar projects in Sheridan township has the fields along I-94 circled in red. In the final panel, an illustration of a building labled "DATA CENTER" has arrows pointing at it from the left, where a non-renewable energy plant proves energy, and on the right, where a grounwater pump provides water.

In the ninth section of comics, an illustration of a man facing away from the viewer looks at two piles of barrels, where the one on the left is seven stacked barrels of water, each labeled "1 million," and the one on the right is a stack of four barrels of water, each also labled "1 million."

In the tenth section of comics, the panel shows an illustration of a man speaking from a laptop on a desk, on a video call.

In the final section of comics, the first panel shows an illustration of a solar field. The second panel shows an illustration of a man speaking from a chair. In the final panel, text reads: "The next and final edition of this series will feature other impacts of solar development, including residents' voices and an exploration of the ecosystem impacts this kind of development can have. "

Read part two of this series to learn more about the community impacts of solar in Sheridan Township.

The following sources were used in reporting for this article:

  1. For more details about SOLV Energy, find further information on their website.
  2. To learn more about the generation of solar energy or photovoltaic modules specifically, find more information on Enel Green Power’s website.
  3. For additional details about the solar companies discussed in this article, find more about Calhoun County Solar and River Fork Solar on the Global Energy Monitor Wiki, and Shipsterns Solar on GridInfo.
  4. To learn more about Michigan Public Act 328, read the full act on the Michigan Legislature Website’s record of the latest amendment. 
  5. To learn more about Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer’s signing of the Clean Energy & Jobs Act, find more from MLive’s coverage of the signing.
  6. For more details about the state of Michigan’s legislation on data centers, find more from Planet Detroit’s coverage of Michigan Senate Act 237.
  7. To learn more about data centers, find more about what they are and the computing demands of generative AI from Forbes’ coverage on each subject.

Editor’s note: Monday, Nov. 18, 9:45 p.m.: Spelling of Kleiman’s last name was corrected.

About Bonnie Lord 56 Articles
Bonnie Lord is a junior from Alma, Michigan and is an environmental science major at Albion College. She is driven by community, justice and sustainability. She enjoys bird watching, reading and dismantling the patriarchy. Contact Bonnie via email at BFL10@albion.edu.

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